It's getting sporty in Berlin: this weekend you can cheer on the fastest runners in the world at the BMW Berlin Marathon (or run in it yourself). If you prefer a more leisurely pace, we have a special kind of construction site tour or the Young Programme of the International Literature Festival for you. There's also street food from a cargo bike, Berlin's big clean-up on World Cleanup Day and a magical show about a Berlin from a bygone era.
Tip 1: Cheer on the world's fastest runners at the BMW Berlin Marathon 2025
It's that time of year again on Sunday: the world's fastest runners (and of course countless amateur athletes) will line up at the start of the Berlin Marathon. Thanks to the flat landscape in and around the capital, the marathon here is one of the fastest in the world and always delivers new best times. You can celebrate these along the route with the runners, wheelchair users and handbikers and maybe even cheer on a friend or two.
When: Sunday
Where: Start and finish in Tiergarten, running course throughout the city centre
Tip 2: Visit the construction site of the Bauhaus Archive
The Bauhaus Archive is getting a new home and invites you to visit the building site. So put on your construction site helmets, get some sturdy shoes and visit the new building, which has been under construction on the site in Klingelhöferstraße since 2018 according to the plans of Staab Architekten. Architectural tours, artistic installations, music, dance and performances as well as the Bauhaus workshop await you on the construction site tour. Admission is free, but you will need a time slot ticket, which you can obtain from the archive's website.
When: Friday to Sunday
Where: Bauhaus Baustelle-Archiv/Museum für Gestaltung, Klingelhöferstraße 14, Tiergarten
Tip 3: Join in the excitement at Tatort Neukölln in the BKA theatre
Things are hotting up again in Neukölln: Edith Schröder's house has been sold, she has received a hefty rent increase and everything looks like she will soon be on the street. Fortunately, she is able to borrow some money - but unfortunately from the wrong people. And so the story takes its course, which you can experience live at the BKA theatre on Friday and Saturday. Here you get everything that makes for great entertainment: capitalist mechanisms in the big city, criminal machinations and, of course, a good dose of humour.
When: Friday and Saturday at 8 pm
Where: Mehringdamm 34, Kreuzberg
Tip 4: Celebrate variety and diversity at the Qweer Fall Fest
Because the Qweer Fest in spring was so great, Manifesto Market is celebrating again in autumn: Qweer Fall Fest is a huge party for the LGBTQIA+ community and everyone who wants to join in the celebrations. In the middle of the autumnally decorated Manifesto Market at Potsdamer Platz, you'll find live music, market stalls with queer labels, performances and a really diverse programme. So come along and celebrate diversity and cohesion!
When: Saturday from 1 pm to midnight
Where: Manifesto Potsdamer Platz, Alte Potsdamer Straße 7, Mitte
Tip 5: Relax in the garden of Berlin's largest palace
Charlottenburg Palace and its gardens are always worth a visit - but as autumn sets in, the enchanting grounds really come into their own. Over 300 years of garden art are gathered here. In addition to the wonderful flora, you can also see impressive historical buildings such as the Mausoleum of Queen Luise and the New Pavilion by Karl Friedrich Schinkel. With our combined ticket, you can gain admission to the palace and gardens and skip the queue at the gate. There's no more relaxing way to stroll through the royal grounds.
When: Friday to Sunday from 10 am to 5.30 pm
Where: Charlottenburg Palace, Spandauer Damm 10-22, Charlottenburg
Tip 6: Clean up Berlin on World Cleanup Day
Simply lend a hand and make the world a little bit better: On World Cleanup Day, you have the opportunity to roll up your sleeves and sweep your own front door - literally! The global event is all about clearing your own neighbourhood of rubbish and litter. Numerous initiatives, associations and municipal organisations take part and clean up the environment together. For example, the hands-on activities on Friday in Treptower Park from 11 am to 2 pm and on Saturday in Tiergarten from 11 am to 2 pm. And of course, in the spirit of the bottom-up movement, you can also organise a collection campaign yourself. So grab your bin bags and tongs and get out the door for a big clean-up day!
When: Friday and Saturday
Where: Various locations throughout Berlin
Tip 7: Dine with a view at Tim Raue's restaurant Sphere
Even in Berlin, it is almost impossible to dine higher and at a higher level - because celebrity chef Tim Raue 's restaurant Sphere is located at the highest point in the capital: in the sphere of the TV tower. The restaurant rotates once or twice an hour and you rotate with it. This gives you a truly impressive all-round view of Berlin while you eat. The menu includes down-to-earth classics of Berlin cuisine such as pork knuckle, Königsberger Klopse and vegetarian and vegan dishes.
When: Friday to Sunday from 9 am to 11 pm
Where: Berlin TV Tower, Panoramastraße 1A, Mitte
Tip 8: Cabaret - The Berlin Musical
Berlin in the Golden Twenties: between glittering parties, rampant misery and signs of approaching fascism. In Cabaret - The Berlin Musical, you experience these formative years in the capital and accompany nightclub girl Sally on her quest for fame and love. After eight Tony Awards on Broadway, the production is now coming to the original location in Berlin. Let yourself be whisked away for an evening to a Berlin from another time!
When: Saturday at 8 pm, Sunday at 7 pm
Where: Tipi am Kanzleramt, Große Querallee, Mitte
Tip 9: Discover the power of words at the 25th Berlin International Literature Festival
Glow, the motto of this year's Berlin International Literature Festival, is clearly ambiguous: glow can glow, glow can also ignite fire. You can find out for yourself which reading you prefer at one (or more) of the many events. We would particularly like to recommend the young programme from 11 to 24 September. Here, children and young people can read together with authors, discuss and immerse themselves in the world of written words by trying them out. With around 55 readings and workshops, there's sure to be something for everyone!
When: Friday to Sunday
Where: Various venues
Tip 10: Combine bike and street food at Bites & Bikes
We know street food from food trucks, but not yet street food on cargo bikes. If you feel the same way, you can change that this weekend at JULES B-PART. This is where the first street food festival with cargo bikes is taking place. Not only excellent food awaits you here, but also countless exciting bicycle constructions (self-built) on and with which street food is prepared. A festival for foodies and technology fans alike, where you can talk shop, gather inspiration and simply enjoy the flavours.
When: Saturday and Sunday from 11 am to 10 pm
Where: JULES B-PART am Gleisdreieck, Luckenwalder Straße 6b, Kreuzberg
Tip 11: Discover new spaces for the performing arts at SPIELRAUM
For the second time this weekend, SPIELRAUM, Berlin' s independent performing arts festival, will take place. The festival of the independent theatre scene opens up spaces for encounters, participation and new perspectives. The programme, developed together with the scene, features stage art in unusual places: in neighbourhood homes, punk clubs or even in shopping centres. In other words, wherever art comes into contact with life and can provide new perspectives. Come along and rediscover ordinary Berlin places in an unusual way!
When: Friday to Sunday
Where: Various locations in Berlin
Here you'll find even more great tips for activities & things to do in Berlin - whatever the weather.
